1. Technical Field
The present application relates generally to an improved data processing system and method. More specifically, the present application is directed to method and apparatus to provide independent drive enclosure blades in a blade server system with low cost, high speed switch modules.
2. Description of Related Art
In some systems, a collection of servers is interconnected into a server system, sharing high-speed fabric topologies, such as in BladeCenter® systems. “BladeCenter” is a trademark of International Business Machines Corporation in the United States, other countries, or both. A BladeCenter® system is a server architecture that houses multiple server modules (“blades”) in a single chassis. Blade servers are widely used in data centers to save space and improve system management. Either self-standing or rack mounted, the chassis provides the power supply. Each blade may have its own CPU, memory, and hard disk. Blade servers generally provide their own management systems and may include a network or storage switch.
Most computer systems require storage and a means of accessing the storage. Storage may be accessed by means of redundant array of independent disks (RAID) controllers, either singular or redundant. For example, in some current BladeCenter® configurations, myriad server blades are populated and interconnected to a shared fabric. Appropriate switch modules are also populated and interface the fabric to RAID controllers within the BladeCenter® system. The RAID controllers in turn provide connectivity to the fundamental storage, such as hard disk drives.
BladeCenter® systems are transitioning from external storage to internal storage, whereby customers can achieve a “store-in-a-box” solution. Such products constitute server blades, RAID controller blades, storage blades, and switch modules to interconnect them all. An example of a storage blade is a drive enclosure blade (DEB). DEBs may provide boot drives (B-DEB) for the processor blades, a “switched bunch of disks” (SBOD) with no redundant array of independent disks (RAID) controller (S-DEB), or a SBOD with an integrated RAID controller (I-DEB).